The UK Government has pledged a string of defence investments to equip the country for a “new era of threat”, including the construction of at least six new weapon factories. Defence Secretary John Healey said Labour’s defence review, which will also include the procurement of up to 7,000 UK-built long range weapons and investment in a “more integrated [and] lethal” military, would function as a “message to Moscow” about the country’s “readiness to fight” if necessary. The strategic defence review, which will be published on Monday, June 2, is expected to warn of the growing threat from hostile states including Russia and China and unveil “big new investments in our national security”, Healey told the BBC.
“Six billion over the next five years in factories [like the Storm Shadow missile production site in Stevenage] allow us not just to produce the munitions that equip our forces for the future but to create the jobs in every part of the UK – 1,800 jobs in every nation of the United Kingdom,” he said. “This is a message to Moscow as well. This is Britain standing behind making our Armed Forces stronger but [also] making our industrial base stronger. This is part of our readiness to fight if required, but the strength in which to deter those fights in the future.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the review as a “radical blueprint” that would end the “disgraceful hollowing out” of the armed forces, with a new approach aimed at meeting the call for an “always on” munitions capacity that can be escalated quickly.
The government has pledged £1.5 billion towards building the six factories, alongside plans to turn the country’s military into a “formidable, integrated fighting machine”.
“We will invest in a fighting force that is more integrated, more ready, more lethal than ever – putting Britain back where it belongs as a leader in defence and a leader in NATO,” Starmer wrote in The Sun.
He added that preparing for future global threats would involve “bringing together every capability we have, from drones, to artillery, to human instinct and intelligence, into one formidable, integrated fighting machine”.
Healey said UK defence spending will rise to 3% GDP by 2034, and praised the new investments as an “engine for economic growth” and a way to create jobs across the whole of the country.
The conflict in Ukraine has led major military figures to criticise Britain’s dwindling weapon stockpiles – with the Eastern European war laying bare the shortfalls in the country’s production capacity.
However, the Conservatives criticised Labour for being too slow to take action against the global uncertainty, and questioned why munitions production had been “largely switched off for the past year”.
Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge said: “Of course, we welcome investment in munitions factories, but we don’t know when they will be ready, only that these orders should have been placed months ago.
“Ultimately, we need to see greater ambition for the pace and scale of rearmament our armed forces require, given the threats we face and the need to replace inventory gifted to Ukraine.
“That means 3% of GDP by the end of this parliament, and Labour properly prioritising defence spending – instead of seeking to outspend Reform on welfare.”
